[ad_1]
The CBD products that populate shelves at Walgreens, gas stations and other retailers in Illinois could be subject to lab testing under a bill introduced in the Illinois legislature Wednesday.
The bill, from Rep. Bob Morgan, D-Deerfield, would require all CBD products sold in the state to meet testing requirements that would be developed by the Illinois Department of Agriculture.
CBD-infused products, which include everything from caramels and dog treats to oils and bath bombs, have become ubiquitous on retail shelves during the past year. CBD, short for cannabidiol, is a cannabis compound that does not get users high.
Consumers use the products to alleviate conditions like anxiety or chronic pain, but the items remain largely unregulated. Some products put themselves through third-party testing to prove they contain the promised levels of CBD, but there is no standard requirement.
“This legislation would give the Department of Agriculture the ability to step in to make sure we are selling products that are safe for people to use,” Morgan said.
The health and safety concerns surrounding CBD are wide-ranging, said Coco Meers, co-founder of Chicago-based CBD company Equilibria. There could be harmful pesticides or heavy metals in the products, or the cream a consumer buys might not actually contain the amount of promised CBD, robbing a consumer of any therapeutic benefits, she said.
When Equilibria was searching for a supply chain partner, “we were really unnerved by the lack of consistency and regulation, and the wide variety of manufacturing processes that companies were using,” Meers said. “At the end of the day, everything gets called CBD, but all CBD is not created equal.”
The proposed bill would require any products for sale that don’t have the required tests to be removed from store shelves and online shops, Morgan said. Potential fines start at $1,000 and increase with more violations.
The fines collected would go to a newly created CBD Safety Fund, which would be used for enforcement.
[ad_2]
Source link